Canadian Forest Service Publications
Management perspectives on Aqua incognita: Connectivity and cumulative effects of small natural and artificial streams in boreal forests.2017. Kuglerrová, L.; Hasselquist, E.;Richardson, J.S.; Sponseller, R.; Kreutzweiser, D.; Laudon, H. Hydrological Processes: 1-7.
Year: 2017
Issued by: Great Lakes Forestry Centre
Catalog ID: 38296
Language: English
Availability: PDF (request by e-mail)
Available from the Journal's Web site. †
DOI: 10.1002/hyp.11281
† This site may require a fee
Plain Language Summary
A symposium was held at Krycklan Watershed in Umea, Sweden in Oct 2016. The gathering was to share information and discuss new directions in riparian forest management to conserve ecological integrity. Kreutzweiser was invited to speak on the application of emulation of natural disturbance principles to riparian forest management, and showcase the CFS research in this area. The invited commentary in HPToday is a reflection on the issues covered in that symposium. The key message is that traditional fixed width buffers are not the best configuration for sustaining riparian and stream ecosystems, but rather a more flexible and ecological relevant approach is recommended. Two emerging concepts considering hydrologically adapted buffers (HAB) in which residual riparian forest is retained in areas of cryptic wet soils, and the emulation of natural disturbance (END) in which careful, intentional riparian harvesting is used to emulate natural disturbance patterns, are discussed with management implications. Both of these concepts are overlain on the overall protection issue for very small headwaters stream (Aqua incognito), including those that arise from draining activities in Scandanavia. The importance of the publication is to highlight how CFS research is helping to lead the way to innovative, improved forest management strategies for conserving riparian and aquatic ecosystem integrity in managed watersheds.
